A Study of the Mind
by Alexandria Malfoy
Summary: CH. 5 & 6 UP! AU It is after the final war and Ginny has already started to rebuild her life. She is now a successful wizarding psychologist employed by Azkaban and St. Mungo's. Will she meet her match in an unlikely patient? DG
1. Ginevra Weasley, Wizarding Psychologist

**Disclaimer**- I do not own them. I wish I did, but I do not.

**A/N**- ASotM is based off of another famous (and favorite) pair of mine's. Therefore, I do not own some of the plot as well. Well, at least the idea of it. Somethings in this story I do own, but this story is based loosely off of a relationship in Batman. Don't make fun! I am a comic book junkie! If you do figure it out (hopefully you won't till the end), review and I shall let you know if you are correct. Hopefully I didn't make it too obvious. xoxox

  
A Study of the Mind- Chapter 1- Ginevra Weasley, Wizarding Psychologist

I wouldn't be where I am today if it weren't for 2 things: the final war and Ron.

It still amazes me that my reputation and popularity grew so much in just 3 short years. In those 3 years many things have happened to allow me the privilege of studying my most recent patient, but you'll learn about him later on. For now, let's just focus on those 2 reasons from above and their importance to my career.

In order to understand my current situation, you must first understand the final war's importance. It was there that my fate as a wizarding psychologist was sealed.

It's odd because I changed my mind so many times throughout the war. In terms of my career that is. You see all of my life and even during the beginning of the war I wanted to be a Healer. I figured that after the pain that Tom caused me, I should at least help those over come whatever physical pain his minions bestowed upon them. And for awhile, I was content with my choice. Then the war came and I still wanted to be a Healer. I would go to war camps, interning with the resident Healers, learning as much as I could while trying to heal as fast as I could. It may sound strange, but I was in heaven. Although there was plenty of blood, something I would have to get used to, there was also plenty of Dark magic, something I knew a lot about. I'm sure you could imagine how much of a help I was to those who were cursed with Dark magic. I also saw many students in the infirmary that I didn't expect to see. For example, I expected to see the Trio, but I did not expect to see someone like Millicent Bulstrode risking her life for the better half of the wizarding world. Yet there she was, out there with the other Aurors, trying to fight off Malfoys Junior and Senior in their quest to appease Tom. It shocked me at first to see her at just 17, staring death in the eye in the form of Draco Malfoy. Then again, at 16, so was I, only in a different sense. I saw it in the eyes of those struggling to live; those I watched die at my hands. It was a rather unsettling and that was when I decided to become an Auror.

Again, it seemed perfectly reasonable at the time. I mean I had an extensive knowledge of the Dark Arts (as well as some insight to Tom's twisted mind) and I had that training with the DA up until the war started.

I had decided to become an Auror, but I didn't know why. At the time, I just had this innate feeling that wouldn't be fulfilled until I started Auror training. Now that I think about it though, maybe it was because I wanted to prevent death from ever happening. Not very bright logic, but that's not the point. The point was, was that I would have given anything to be in battle. Because we were in the middle of the war though, all of the competent Aurors available were out fighting the good fight. A bit of an inconvenience if you ask me. I'll admit, it discouraged me quite a bit, but that didn't stop me. During my 'Auror Phase' as I like to call it, I still worked as a Healer, but as a fee of sorts for my wonderful skills and services, I asked for training from those who were having an extended stay at the infirmary. It wasn't exactly top notch training, but it sufficed and subdued my appetite for the time being.

I like to compare my first day in battle to sex. At the time, I was still a virgin, Harry would just have to wait until Tom was vanquished, as I constantly reminded him, but once I lost it, being in battle was the only thing that gave me the same feeling. I don't know why it felt that way, but it did. It was an orgasmic, insatiably pleasurable feeling that ran through me as I stood down those that worshipped Tom. The magic coursing through my veins seemed to increase tenfold and I felt invincible; like nothing could stop me from killing.

Then something did.

That 'something' made my third career choice for me, the one that led me to become who I am today. This 'something' also leads to my second reason: Ron.

How I love Ron. He's the greatest brother any girl could ever ask for. A tad overprotective at times, but I still love him all the same. You must be asking yourself 'What happened and why is Ron so important?' Well, to answer your question, Ron _is_ the reason why I do what I do and the 'something' (or 'someone' I should say) that I keep referring to is the one and only Draco Malfoy.

Now I'm sure you're also wondering how a complete prat like Malfoy plays into this; don't worry, I shall explain it to you right now.

It all happened on the battlefield. I had been in battle for about a week with the war having gone on for about 2 years. I was also 18 by then. Ron on the other hand, was 19 and had been in battle ever since the beginning of the war. Mum always said that it was a miracle that he wasn't dead yet. But there he was, holding his own diligently waiting until Harry and/or Dumbledore killed Tom for good.

We had been fighting near Hogwarts that day and Lucius Malfoy had put his son up to the task of defeating those guarding it while he did some bidding for Tom. A suicide mission if I ever saw one. There was no way that Draco Malfoy and the Death Eater slime he was commanding could have made it past us. It would have taken an act of divine intervention for that to occur. Though near the end, surprisingly enough, he almost did it. Both sides were retreating quickly, but Malfoy would just not give up. Neither would Ron. And I, being his sister, willingly followed him deeper into the fray.

I had one purpose during that final battle. My objective was to curse the living hell out of anything that stood in mine and Ron's way.

By that time, Harry and Dumbledore were forced to go off to Romania to defeat Tom, Hermione was nearly killed, so she had been hospitalized, leaving the remaining Weasleys (Ron and myself especially) to save Hogwarts from Draco. So far, Ron and I had been pretty successful in holding back the Death Eaters from bombarding the main entrance, when a sudden commotion caused them to stop. It seemed that the Malfoy heir wasn't too pleased with his minions' progress and decided to take care of business himself. That, my friends, was the moment of decision.

Draco marched right up to the very front, challenging Ron and me with a smirk; blood and sweat plastering his hair to his forehead and neck. We circled each other, trying to decide who should attack first. A clichéd move, something that reminded me of Muggle martial arts movies, but it was effective in terms of intimidation. Our stare-down came to a point where I just couldn't stand it anymore and I rushed over to Draco, hoping to engage him in battle. I thought for sure that he would have killed me right then and there, but his reaction time was slow and I hit him with one of my infamous hexes first. I believe it was 'Expelliarmus', but the details get fuzzier by the day. Like I said, he seemed hesitant, but once I disarmed him, he came crashing back to reality. He quickly got up and used his wand like a sword, clashing it against mine. We had been fighting for a good 15 minutes when Ron tried to join me in my battle.

"Not bad little one," was the very last thing I remember Draco Malfoy telling me before he cast one last curse on me, catapulting me against the Whomping Willow, where I blacked out.

From what I could tell, I was out for about twenty minutes, and when I awoke I discovered Ron and Draco in the midst of a duel, just like I thought they would be. I had figured that as soon as I had hit the willow that Ron took my place in front of Draco.

The two boys were dripping with sweat, looking ready to kill, obviously giving it all they had. I carefully snuck closer to the battle; I didn't want to be seen by Malfoy Junior.

The next ten minutes played out like a Muggle movie in slow motion.

Draco was getting weaker and Ron knew that with one final blow, he could probably finish him off for good. Ron thought this and could have succeeded too, but Malfoy had an ace up his sleeve. As Ron pulled back his wand to give Draco the Killing Curse, Draco yelled out 'Crucio!' and I knew it was all over. Ron fell upon the mud and grass, writhing in pain, but Draco would not let up, even when Ron was begging for mercy. The look on Malfoy's face was a strange mixture of sympathy and a sick, twisted pleasure. I didn't know which emotion was stranger; the fact that he enjoyed torturing my brother, or the fact that he felt pity for his archrival. It was interesting and scary all at the same time.

I think I was in a bit of a trace for the six or seven minutes that Ron was under the curse. I snapped out of it when I heard one final blood-curdling scream from my brother. Immediately I sprung up and ran over to Malfoy, engaging him in one last battle.

It didn't take me that long to defeat the all-powerful Draco Malfoy. In fact, I think it took me all of about 5 seconds. I believe it was a matter of how fast I could perform the Body-Bind Curse. Now I'm sure you're wondering how I possibly did that without getting killed. Personally, I have no idea. Truthfully, I think I was just too damn lucky, but more to the point, I watched Draco fall to the ground with a loud 'thump' as I fell to my knees next to Ron. When I heard the scream, you see, I thought he was dead, which is why I ran over to confront Draco. What I didn't realize at the time was how wrong I was.

I decided to leave Draco to the other Aurors, who hauled him into Hogwarts, as I took Ron to the infirmary. It wasn't until I got to the hospital wing that I realized that Ron was not dead, but in a state of shock; my training from my Healer days kicking in at the oh-so-appropriate moment. Sorry if you missed the sarcasm in my voice, but it was there.

Nevertheless, Ron's fate mirrored that of the Longbottoms. He was quickly moved to the Mental Ward at St. Mungo's as soon as the war ended, some two weeks later. That was when I made my final career choice. I decided to become a psychologist in order to be closer to Ron. Turned out to be something I was good at, something I excelled at and something that I really and truly did enjoy. I know it may be rather strange to find a 'crazy doctor', as Fred and George playfully call it, in the wizarding world, but it's a respected job that I happen to be damn good at. My final study on Ron allowed me the honour of graduating the top of my class at the age 22. Not bad, eh? I would love to explain more, but that would take even longer. If you wish, I can tell you about my years of training with Professor Upland some other time. Right now is just not suitable enough for me. What I will tell you though is that because of my accomplishment, I was able to get the pick of the litter in terms of patients, which gets me to my most recent and perhaps most challenging patient. Drum roll please…it's the one…the only…

Draco Malfoy

**A/N**- I finally started my other fic! Woot! Anywho, thanks a bunch to Angel for betaing! Please review for it will make me extremely happy. Ch. 2 should be out sometime soon. xoxox


	2. Psychological Analysis

**A/N**- WARNING! Major HBP spoilers. Do not read this if you have not yet finished HBP. For those of you who have read it...well...I'll tell you at the end of this chapter. That's about it. The rest of the author's notes are at the end.

* * *

Chapter 2- Psychological Analysis 

Ginny woke up that morning to discover that yet again she had fallen asleep at her office at St. Mungo's.

"Crap," she muttered under her breath when she saw the pile of paperwork and files on her desk, all pertaining to one patient. In fact, she had an entire file cabinet devoted to that damn patient of hers. He was interesting to study though, Ginny would give him that. _I never thought that anyone would be more challenging than Ron, but then again, I could be wrong_, Ginny thought as she looked for that accursed folder; the folder that started it all.

"A-ha!" she shouted when she found slightly bulging folder.

She glanced at the name on the file and still couldn't believe it was actually him. It was only a year and she still couldn't figure him out. It was annoying as all hell too. But what Ginny found sad about it was that he knew it as well.

"Fucking Draco Malfoy. I just _had_ to listen to Professor Upland! 'Oh it'll be a great challenge for someone of your brilliance!' Hmph. Yeah, he's a 'challenge' alright. Let's see you try to get any information out of that man. He was damn lucky that request his mother made was approved by the Ministry."

It wasn't that Ginny didn't mind studying him because he DID in fact have a rather fascinating mind, but he was just too damn annoying for his own good.

She opened the folder to see his Azkaban mug shot glaring back at her with the fierceness that the real Draco Malfoy showed her each day. His psychological analysis was partially hand-written in Ginny's now messy handwriting and was only a quarter done. She knew it would take years to unravel the enigma that was his mind, but she would never give up on a patient, even someone like Malfoy. She unclipped the photo and placed it on the other side with her left hand and grabbed his file parchment with the right.

It was going to be another long day.

**xXxXxXxXxXx**

Psychological Analysis

Name: Draco Thomas Malfoy  
Date of Birth: 5 June 1980  
Sex: Male  
Age: 24  
Height: 6' 3"  
Weight: 165 lbs.  
Birthplace: Malfoy Manor, just outside of Wiltshire in South-western England  
Ancestry: Pureblood

General Family History

Father: Lucius Gabriel Malfoy  
Date of Birth: 16 November 1954  
Age: 50  
Status: Deceased

Mother: Narcissa Eleanor Black Malfoy  
Date of Birth: 10 January 1963  
Age: 41  
Status: Alive; has yet to remarry

Other Living Relatives

_The Tonks Family_  
Andromeda (Black) Tonks (aunt)  
Ted Tonks (uncle)  
Nymphadora Tonks (cousin)

_The Lestrange Family_  
Bellatrix (Black) Lestrange (aunt)  
Rodolphus Lestrange (uncle)

_The Weasley Family_  
Molly (Prewett) Weasley

Illnesses/Conditions: large concentration of Dark magic, family history of insanity

Other Personal Information  
Incapacities: None that are known of.  
Criminal History: Association with Voldemort and the Death Eaters, performing the Cruciatus Curse on Ronald Weasley, responsible for the deaths of Lucius Malfoy, Percival Weasley, Angelina Johnson and Cho Chang  
Wand: 13" Willow with Unicorn hair

Notes

-has a tendency to speak in the third person  
-favourite among female (and some male) Healers  
-uses charm to seduce Healers (note to self: try to prevent this at all costs!)  
-killed father on orders from Voldemort  
-attempted to kill Albus Dumbledore at 16  
-youngest person to receive the Dark Mark at 16  
-extreme mental inhibitions (does not like to talk about the past, uses Occulmency to block out others)  
-refuses to comply with even the simplest requests  
-has had ten other psychologists in the past two years; all had left the position with mysterious conditions or afflictions  
-originally slated for the Dementor's Kiss until mother, Narcissa Black-Malfoy, pleaded insanity for her son  
-relocated to the Mental Ward at St. Mungo's three months ago…

**xXxXxXxXxXx**

Ginny didn't need to look over the rest of his file. It was too extensive for her liking. Besides, she knew Draco like a brother. An evil and highly disliked brother, but like a brother nonetheless.

Today was one of her visits. She usually did them about every other day during the working week, leaving the remaining days (and if needed, the weekend) to study her other numerous patients. It bothered her to have to spend most of her time hearing Draco babble on about useless nonsense. Then again, Narcissa was paying Ginny extremely well, allowing her to live quite comfortably in a spacious flat in London. _Thank the Gods for women like Narcissa Black_, Ginny thought with a grin. After Lucius died in the war, Ginny learned (from Draco of course), that his mother immediately got rid of her taken last name and started using her maiden name, denouncing her husband as a lunatic in the process. Ginny remembered that this was around the time when she first got Draco as a patient. She thought that he would care about his mother's actions, but he was so far gone that he barely even registered it. Ginny found that visit to be very unsettling. It wasn't until she got Draco to talk about it that she learned that he was the one who killed his father.

She walked down the halls of St. Mungo's in her black pinstripe pantsuit and red dress shirt. Ginny hated to wear just black and white. Black was fine by her, but white was just too boring for her; she liked colour in her life. Her black stilettos clicked on the white linoleum floor as she held the handle of her briefcase in her teeth, freeing her hands to fix her hair into a very chic but business-like chignon. Once she secured her hair in place, she took the briefcase out of her mouth, pulled out her wand and cleaned the handle with a quick spell. She deftly placed her wand inside her jacket and stepped over the threshold into the Criminal Ward at St. Mungo's. She took a deep breath as she walked forward, allowing the door to swing shut behind her.

She went through the usual procedure visiting Draco entailed. That meant testing her wand for suspicious curses, a search of her person for contraband and of course testing and checking her briefcase for some more spells and/or contraband. When Ginny first started her visits, she was annoyed at the lunacy of testing her. The Aurors claimed it was protocol, but it still annoyed her. As the weeks passed, Ginny just ignored the procedure and tried to focus on the task at hand.

She made her way through the corridor, ignoring the stares and cries for help. Luckily, Draco was the only one in the criminal ward that she knew. Ginny walked straight to the back; Draco's cell was at the very end of the corridor. Every time Ginny got closer to his cell, she always seemed to become a bit scared or cautious. His cell was completely different to that of the other patients. The Aurors and Healers in the ward called him the 'Special One' as a little joke.

"Oh, yeah, he's special alright," Ginny mumbled underneath her breath.

As she got closer to the cell, she paused. It occurred to her how different Draco's cell truly was. While most patients either had bars with wards on them or the padded room with a slit called a window in the door, Draco's was completely different. One wall was completely made of glass; an easier way for the Aurors to keep an eye on him. The rest of the walls were padded so he wouldn't dream of doing anything stupid and every wall had at least seven wards on them. Even his robes were different. While most were decked out in while robes with a straight jacket underneath, he got to wear dark green robes with no straight jacket what-so-ever! Ginny personally felt that this was yet again all of Narcissa's doing, but Draco never hinted as such.

Ginny gathered her breath once again and strode over to Draco's cell.

She patiently waited for the wards to be taken down when she spotted Draco. Normally when she saw him, he just sat on his bed fiddling with his nails or laying back waiting for Ginny to enter. Her breath caught in her throat when she realized what he was doing. Instead of sitting down, he walked over to the glass wall, walking along with Ginny, smiling all the while. _Strange_, she thought. _He never smiles, never. I believe it's physically impossible._ Then she took a few deep breaths, willing herself to believe that her all-nighter was making her feel a bit disillusioned. Once she calmed down, she thanked the guard on duty and entered the cell. She wanted to regret it immediately.

Draco met her at the door, shouting out "Ginevra!" while enveloping her in a big hug. She looked behind her hoping that the door was still open. Her gaze was met with a closed door and a sniggering guard. She quickly patted Draco on the back and pulled away.

"Umm…nice to see you too Draco. So how have been for the past few weeks? Did you have a good Christmas?" Ginny asked, conjuring up a red velvet cushioned chair in the process.

Draco settled down on his bed before answering. "Oh well, it was ok I guess."

Ginny went through their normal friendly formalities with a slight child-like air. She already picked up that he wanted to act like an eight-year old today. If he decided to act like one, then she'd have to think like one.

"What do you mean 'ok'? You didn't enjoy yourself at the hospital?" Ginny asked.

"No I did enjoy myself. The Healers even brought in some entertainment and Mother _did_ visit, but it was just…I don't know…weird to not be at the Manor. Ginny, why didn't you visit me?"

Ginny didn't know what to say. He never behaved like this in the year that she studied him. Sure he could be a pain, just like today was proving, but he never called her by her real name or "Ginny". It was always "Weasley" and he NEVER displayed any emotion short of loathing whenever she came in. Ginny didn't know if she liked this new development very much.

"Draco, you know that I would have visited you, but I was with my family."

"Oh, I understand. Too busy socialising with your family and _Potter_ to visit your favourite patient," Draco replied with a sneer, putting a spitting emphasis on Harry's last name.

Ginny almost did a little jump for when he went back to his normal snarky self. This was familiar territory. She could deal with this Draco, not eight-year-old-pain-in-the-ass-spoiled-brat Draco. "Oh gods Draco not that again! You know that I haven't gone out with Harry for over a year! And besides, I'm here to talk about you, not about my love or social life."

"Fine then. So _Dr. Weasley_, what's on today's scheduled session?" he replied with emphasis on 'Dr. Weasley'.

"Well…let's see…" Ginny trailed off, taking his file out of her briefcase. "Hmm…we already discussed your childhood, what about your years at Hogwarts?"

"Oh please Weasley. That's just a waste of a question and a waste of our hour long session if you ask me."

"Draco, who's the doctor here?"

"You are."

"And what is my job?"

"To discuss your personal life with me?"

"Nice try, but no. Please Draco, don't be stubborn and answer my questions."

"Alright, as you wish. What's the first question?"

"How about we start off with some of the more obvious questions?"

"Whatever Weasley. Just get on with it already."

"Fine. How did your years at Hogwarts make you feel?"

"Horrible."

"Really? How so?"

Draco snorted at this. "What kind of question is that? You were there, you should know."

"Draco, I know, but it just helps me to better understand what's going on inside your mind."

"Ok. I'll bite. It was horrible in many ways. It was horrid from the moment I met Potter. It was miserable the moment he didn't shake my hand first year. In that one inconsequential moment, I had unwittingly decided the fate of my seven years at Hogwarts. The thing Weasley is that I really and truly wanted to befriend Potter and the fact that he didn't accept my friendship irked me in more ways than one. I guess that's why I focused all of my hatred and personal anguish towards what you so lovingly called the 'Dream Team'. It may seem childish and pathetic now, but at the time, it seemed like the right thing to do."

He paused here, watching Ginny scribble down some notes on a roll of parchment.

"After my first year, things just got worse for me. In my second year, nothing pleased me more than seeing you involved with the Dark Lord's old diary. When my father informed me of his work, I wanted to hop around with a mad sense of joy. I thought it was a just punishment for speaking out against me. Nothing else eventful happened in years three through five. Then year six came along. My sixth year was the year that I could prove my use to the Dark Lord. Everything was perfect. I had every detail of the plan taken care of. Potter followed me," Ginny gasped here. "Oh don't look so surprised. I knew but do you think he had any concrete evidence against me? No? I thought so. Plus, he was too preoccupied with trying to make googly eyes with you while you were off snogging Dean Thomas. Anyways, Potter followed me, but that wasn't too much of a big deal. All I had to do was kill that old fool Dumbledore and my sixth year would have been perfect. It would have been, but at my big moment, I got scared and I ran off like a dog with its tail between its hind legs. I was in a deep depression for weeks. I was irritable, insufferable; an overall bastard. Isn't it funny?" Draco paused again, flashing Ginny a shark-like smile. "So much shit happened in my life and all before I was 16."

Draco left him tome at that, patiently waiting for Ginny to say something profound or thoughtful. She didn't say anything right away, writing down notes instead. After about five minutes, she looked up and spoke.

"Well Draco, thank you for that lovely statement, but you didn't answer my question," Ginny said with a slight smile.

"What! I just poured my heart out with mediocre thoughts about a school I abhor and all I get is 'Sorry Malfoy, but that wasn't what I was looking for'."

Ginny had to bite her cheek to keep from laughing. Once she composed herself, she proceeded to speak.

"Truthfully, you started to answer it, but then you kind of digressed from the point. Here, let me ask you again. In what ways were you years at Hogwarts horrible?"

Draco was silent for about ten minutes, trying to figure out what he wanted to say. Finally, he spoke.

"I'm sorry Weasley, but I can't answer that question."

* * *

**A/N**- Wow. This one was a doosy. We get a lot of information in this chapter. First off, thanks to Angel for her ever-lovely beta. Now as to Draco's little tome. For those of you that have read HBP, I did not put down who actually (I hate to say this) kills Dumbledore because I wrote the first chapter before HBP came out, so I had no idea that that was how it ended. Dumbledore dies in Harry's (or Draco's) seventh year in my story. So he dies, but not yet. We'll see Dumbledore die in mostly flashbacks and such. I'm trying something with this story in that each chapter is written in a differerent point of view or medium. For example, chapter 3 will be snippets taken from Ginny's diary. Please don't forget to review! 

**References**- I forgot to mention this in chapter 1, but the Professor Upland that we keep hearing about is in fact Ms. G(a)linda Upland (or if you prefer the book's version Galinda of the Arduennas of the Uplands) from Wicked (both the musical and the play). I thought she would make a rather amusing professor, but she's the only crossover character. There's going to be a whole chapter later on that features her, mostly when Ginny's in college.


	3. Be Mindful of Your Obligations

**A/N**- Just a little warning: Ginny mentions events from HBP. If you've gotten past chapter 2 though, you're ok.

* * *

Chapter 3- Be Mindful of Your Obligations 

10 January 2004

Thank the gods for Alise Martin. That girl is bloody brilliant. If it weren't for her, I'd be beating the living shite out of my most valuable patient right about now. I know it's wrong to be thinking about that, but he was just grating on my last nerve. You see, after Draco started to refuse answering my questions, my patience started to wear thin. I mean it wasn't like they were extraordinarily hard questions to answer; they were quite the opposite in fact. Our session was nearing its end and I had just about had enough of Malfoy's childish insolence. It was at that point that I saw Alise walking by, her latest session with her patient was over.

I didn't see her right away, only after I clutched onto my armchair for dear life did I see her out of the corner of my eye. She whispered something to the guard on duty who silently nodded and proceeded to open my cell. She rushed in like a hell-bent banshee, screaming my name at the top of her lungs as I lunged for Draco.

Now before I continue with how Alise apprehended me, I must describe Draco's look. Upon reflection (meaning as I write this), I've come to realise how humorous it was. You see when I went to lunge, he was sitting near the edge of his bed with one of his trademark smirks. By that time, a year's worth (actually it's more like 13 years' worth now that I think about it) of annoyance had built up inside me and his last comment was the straw that broke the camel's back. I tried to control myself, but obviously having a death grip on the chair and counting to ten didn't help much. I lunged towards him, watching him squeal in horror, his eyes going as wide as dinner plates as he tried to crawl backwards on his bed. As to his look, well it was a bit like a cross between a deer caught in the headlights and someone who just smelled something rather nasty. Seeing that look on Malfoy made up for Alise scolding me. It was so unlike him. Now that I've thoroughly discussed Malfoy's reaction, I shall commence with Alise's reaction.

Like I was saying before I was side-tracked, Alise ran in screaming my name at the top of her lungs, making me stop about 5 inches away from Draco. I turned my head to give Alise one of my fiercest glares; I was pissed off at her audacity, no matter how thankful I am for it now. My glare didn't do anything to deter her goal. She marched over to where I was standing and muttered a quick apology to Draco before grabbing my ear and dragging me out of his cell, snatching up my briefcase in the process. She let go of me as soon as we were out of the cell, remaining silent as we made our way to my office. As I shut the door to the office behind me, she began her rant.

"Ginevra Molly Weasley!" I thought I was the only one who sounded eerily like my mother when yelling! Alise must have a mother like mine I presume. "Do you have any idea what you could have done!"

"Alise, I-"

"No Ginny! Narcissa Malfoy would have drawn and quartered you and _then_ fire you if you had beaten the living shit out of her son! Your reputation would be ruined and you'd be a bum on the streets of London if I hadn't stopped you. Gin, I know that you have a bit of a temper, but you must learn how to show at least a modicum of self-control."

She stopped here, taking a few deep breaths in the process. I wanted to make some snarky Malfoy-esque comment, but that would only piss her off even more and a pissed off Alise was not an Alise that I wanted to deal with at the time.

In case you're wondering and I know you are, Alise is not at all British; she's American. She's also my best friend and was my roommate during college. She's Asian as well (although she doesn't have one of your typical Asian names, but that's what I like about her!), with jet black hair and bright hazel eyes. She's only a few inches shorter than me, but being the same height as my mother can have its advantages when you've angered her. She has a fashion sense that I envy, but she's teaching me in her fashionable ways. I told her once when we first met that I thought she should be a clothing designer, but she only smiled one of her smiles and said that psychology called her instead. Alise Martin is one of those people you can't help but love, even if she does publicly humiliate me from time to time (she claims it's for my own good, but I've gotten payback already, trust me). We found it strangely convenient that we both work at the same place now. Great! I got side-tracked again! I had to give you a proper description of Alise though! I must stop this and remain focused on what I was writing before. Ah, yes. Now I remember.

As I was saying, Alise and I stood in a somewhat awkward silence as she calmed down and as I tried to figure out what to say. We were silent for about five minutes when I opened my mouth.

"Are you done yet?" There I go again with my Malfoy influenced snarky comments.

"Yes ma'am. But I'm serious Ginny, you need to get over whatever animosity is going on between you and Draco. Or at least subdue it."

"I would if it weren't for my history with said git of a patient."

"But Gin-" I cut off Alise before she could finish. I know kind of rude, but I wasn't thinking all too clearly at the time.

"Nope. Let's forget all about it for now. How was your session with Bella?"

"It could have gone better," Alise said as she sat in one of my visitor chairs.

"Speaking in nonsense again?" I asked, leaning against my desk.

"Yeah. She does have her moments of sanity every now and again, but I only see her about once or twice every two months. She mentions Draco you know."

"I'm sure she does. He mentions Bellatrix too. She was always his favourite aunt since Andromeda was disowned and he barely knew his father's sister, Sophia. She doted on him when she wasn't off nearly getting herself killed. She was like a second mother to him and although she was against it, agreed to perform the Bonding spell for the Unbreakable Vow for his mother and Snape."

"Gotcha. So you want to go out for lunch?"

"Yeah, I'm starved."

I know, I know. We ended that rather quickly, but we have this little policy between us. It's a silent policy, but a policy all the same. It basically states that we won't talk about our patients unless necessary. I know that I asked Alise about her session with Bella, and mind you I shouldn't have, but I was running out of things to say.

Just to let you know, I'm going to skip the pre-lunch small talk and cut straight to our lunch to make life easier for me and because it holds more significance.

Anyways, we get to this café about three blocks away from St. Mungo's (as I'm sure you know hospital food, both Muggle and wizard, is rather gross). As the waitress took our drink order, I pulled out my planner from my briefcase (it has relevance or else I would not be writing about it! Sheesh!) and took a glance at it before deciding on my meal. My posture dropped about three inches as I read the proclamation for the day.

"Christ," I mutter, as it was something that I did not like.

"What's wrong this time Gin?"

"Alise, you do know what day this is, right?"

"Yeah, Ginny. It's the tenth of Jan…u…ar…oh shit."

"Yep," was my rather dull reply. I forgot to mention that it's something that Alise and I are almost obligated to do.

"That means that…"

"Yep."

"Do we have to?"

"Yep."

"Could you stop saying 'yep'? I'll end up alongside Bellatrix if you keep that up!"

"Sorry," I grinned out rather sheepishly.

"Did you already write your letter?"

"No. I completely forgot until I saw it on my calendar. Draco didn't even mention it."

"Well you know Draco's not exactly the rational one right now is he?" Alise hissed.

"Calm down Alise, we'll just send out Narcissa's birthday letters when we get back to the office. You know that we never write out anything extravagant on any of our cards or letters; just enough to let her know how Draco or Bella are doing and wish her a happy birthday. It's a slight bore, but it's the least we could do for the woman who has us financially set for life."

Alise mulled over this for a few seconds before replying with "True."

"For now, let's just enjoy our nice, hospital food-free lunch. Ok?"

"Sure, why not."

Also for your information, I'm skipping past the eating of our meals since it holds no relevance to this entry whatsoever. I'm going to jump ahead to when we get back.

We arrived back at the hospital about an hour and a half later. We parted ways, walking back to our separate offices alone. I unlocked the door and found a letter placed among the clutter. Now why would I notice one singular letter among my mounds of paperwork? Well the envelope was green and lemme tell you, it's not everyday that one gets a green encased letter. I walked over to my desk, placing my briefcase in one of the chairs, reaching out to grab the letter with my left hand.

I turned over the envelope, trying to figure out who it was from. It was obviously from someone important; the paper seemed heavier and more luxurious. I tore open the flap and pulled out the equally heavy and luxurious white paper from within. I scanned over the paper and realized it was an invitation.

At the time I was thinking 'Who the hell do I know that can afford this?' Then it hit me as I looked at the invitation; I swear I need to be more observant. Anywho, the invitation went something like this:

_Miss Ginevra Weasley,_

_You are cordially invited to join us at Malfoy Manor for Narcissa Malfoy's 42nd birthday party.  
Please be at the Manor by 8 o' clock on Saturday, 15 January 2004.  
There will be dinner followed by a gala reception in the ballroom. The attire is formal robes only.  
R.S.V.P. by Thursday, 13 January 2004 to either Pansy Parkinson or Saphira Zabini. _

You can just imagine my shock can't you? I was only in my office for about five minutes before I heard a knock on the door followed by a voice.

"Ginny! It's me, Alise! Open up will you?"

"Come in! The door's open!"

She walked over to my side, waving an identical invitation in front of my face.

"Did you get one of these things too?"

"Yes ma'am. So are you going or not?"

"Ehh…I don't know. I don't have a date."

"Well, you have four days to get one."

"Ha! Like that'll ever happen," Alise said, rolling her eyes.

"Ok. How about this, if you can't find a date by Friday, then we can go together."

"Ok! I can get ready at your flat, too. I'm sure that we'd be able to find suitable examples of the male species at the party, I hope."

"I know you will, myself on the other hand, plan to stay blissfully single for as long as possible."

It probably seems rather odd to you that I actually want to stay single, right? After a slew of long-term relationships over the past two years, I decided to give up on dating for a while. So far, I've liked it. No, I'm not a cynic when it comes to love; I just enjoy my freedom every now and again.

Alise's opinion on the subject matter at hand differs greatly from mine though.

"You can't possibly be serious Gin!" Told you so…Sorry. "You're 23! Don't you want to find a guy now and not when you're about to hit 30? I know I do."

"Alise, I want to find a guy, but I have seven more years before 30, so do you. Plus, after being in three very serious relationships over the past two years, I just want to take a little, ok maybe not so little, hiatus from the dating scene. Even if that means ignoring the perfectly reasonable pick-up lines from various guys."

"I still think you're crazy, but whatever, your loss."

I bit my tongue this time and rolled my eyes instead of making a snarky comment. I know! I'm proud of myself too!

With her last word in, Alise left the office leaving me to write out a reply to Pansy and Saphira's invitation and Naricssa's birthday letter. An accomplishment in itself, let me tell you. I only got Draco as a patient last year (the same applies to Alise and Bellatrix), but on every major holiday and our birthdays, we started getting cards and gifts from Narcissa. After we received a letter from her, we'd quickly respond so as not to seem rude.

Well, the letter was like I said, a task in itself, but I did it and sent it off after a quick read-over. The invitation reply followed suit in a quicker fashion.

-yawns- I think that's about it for today. I'm getting rather tired and it's quite late. I best be off to bed since I plan on making up for my lack of sleep during Sunday's all-nighter. G'night!

* * *

**A/N**- Thanks to Angel, my beta. She rocks on many levels. I made up the name of Lucius's sister, Sophia. It has never been mentioned that Lucius was an only child, but if he is, I'm terribly sorry. In my story, Sophia will play an important role later on, so for now, he has a sister. Alise is my best friend's name. I like the name and I decided to pay homage to Alise here since she encourages me to continue this story. Also, Saphira Zabini is Blaise's mom. I know that they make a brief mention of her in HBP, but she is not given a name. I always thought that she would have an interesting name like her son, so I came up with 'Saphira'. 

You know the drill, please read and review. Chapter 4 will be a good one! (Hint: It involves the two Malfoy men, told from Draco's point of view.)


	4. No One Mourns The Wicked

**A/N**- This is one of the major death scenes. Not too much blood, but where someone gets shot might make you queasy. You have been warned.

* * *

A Study of the Mind- Chapter 4- No One Mourns the Wicked 

I had an order.

That's how it started, as an order like any other one.

At first I didn't want to do it. As I'm sure you could imagine my shock upon first receiving the order.

He had told me it was to make up for my first major failure under him. I readily agreed; I would do anything to make it up to _him_.

When he told me I had to kill someone, I thought 'Oh, no big deal; I already killed that Chang girl. How hard could it be?'

How hard was it you ask? Ha. I'd like to see your reaction when Voldemort tells you the only way to get back into his good graces is to kill your own father.

My initial reaction was 'How the fuck am I going to go home without plotting his death every waking moment?' That was the reaction that was broadcasting itself in my brain. The one that I spoke to the finally embodied Voldemort was 'Yes, my Lord.'

You probably think I'm crazy, but what else could I say? 'I'm sorry Voldemort, but I think you've finally gone off the deep end' or 'There isn't enough power in the entire world that would make me kill my father'? I knew he lost it if he was willing to kill off my father.

To you, it's most likely something good. I mean, after all of the shit my father did, basically screwing over the Ministry and such, the wizarding world could benefit from the death of Lucius Malfoy. And I'm sure now we have, but let's assess the facts, shall we?

To start off with, not only was he the most influential man in the wizarding world, besides Dumbledore and maybe Potter, he was Voldemort's lap dog so to speak.

He was the top Death Eater and the leader of the 'Death Eater inner circle'. An elite group of members in their hierarchy consisting of my father, Aunt Bella, Nott, Parkinson, and that louse Pettigrew.

Technically, Pettigrew was like Voldemort's lap dog, always at the 'Entity's' beck and call to do whatever tickled his fancy on that particular day, but if Voldemort said 'Jump', my father would reply with 'How high?' In a sense, my father did resemble Pettigrew; he was that desperate to gain power, at any cost.

In terms of power over the wizarding world, Lucius could floo up Fudge, make some asinine request like wanting chocolate mousse because the house-elves couldn't make it to save their lives, and at least five minutes later, Fudge'd show up wielding a mean glass of chocolate mousse. Well, I'm sure that my father wouldn't floo Fudge for some mousse since I'm the one with the sweet tooth, but you get the idea. I always felt that they should just get rid of Fudge and elect my father Minister of Magic; he had the entire Ministry twirled around his perfectly manicured pinkie.

Enough about that though, I'm sure that you already knew about my father's power, right? I thought so. Getting back to what I was saying before I went off into that tangent, I hadn't a clue as to the motives behind killing off my father. Or why Voldemort chose me to do it instead of Pettigrew or Parkinson. I always found it rather queer. Many who later saw me commit _the_ murder supposed it was to make an example out of my father. By killing him, it showed that even someone who is perceived to be the most valuable one of all is in the end expendable. Bullshit. That's right, bull-shit. Voldemort knew just how fucking valuable my father was to the cause. If he wanted to make an example, he would have used Crabbe or Goyle; those neanderthals were more than expendable. You know, even to this day I have yet to figure out why my father was chosen to die.

It still haunts me. How I killed my father that is. I had spent weeks carefully planning; waiting for the right time.

I had considered many ways in which I could kill Lucius. One involved poison, but that seemed too cowardice. Another involved using 'Avada Kedavra', but that one was a tad too humane for my liking and I am a bit of a sadist. I went through countless others as well. Every time I found a method that I could deem perfect though, it always had a small flaw within its trappings.

One thing was for sure: I wanted my father to see me when I killed him; to let him know that I was brave enough to complete the task bestowed upon me.

In the end, I decided to kill him at a Death Eater meeting, allowing Voldemort to see me commit that abominable crime himself…

-End of Summer 1998-

"_Draco, are you ready? The Dark Lord is expecting us soon and you know how he gets when we're late."_

"_Yes Father. Mother is informed of our outing tonight. She sends you her love and says good-bye as well."_

"_Oh, how thoughtful of her," Lucius spoke with a slight hint of boredom. "Come now, boy, I should hate to imagine what it would be like if I had to call you for a third time."_

"_Yes, sir. I'm sorry for keeping you and the Dark Lord waiting."_

"_Enough of your childish apologies. I shall be waiting for you." With a loud 'pop!' Lucius Apparated, leaving Draco in his father's study, going over the plan in his mind._

_He had pre-arranged everything from the beginning. Even his own father, a very observant man at that, hadn't noticed the small signs: Draco's skittishness, his mysterious disappearances and even Narcissa's sudden happiness._

_Draco couldn't help telling his mother what Voldemort requested of him. She was his support system and if she didn't support this, then he would emotionally shatter in the process. Naricssa had helped him every step of the way, from choosing the right day, to getting the murder weapon Draco was currently fiddling with._

_He fingered the small 35 mm pistol in his pant's pocket. He took it out and examined it once more, running his hand over the silver metal, reminding him of the molten gunshot metal eyes that he shared with his father. He locked the shotgun, ensuring that it wouldn't go off in his pocket and placed it back in its silk-lined home. _

_Not five seconds later, Draco disappeared with a 'crack!' transporting him to his father's impending doom. _

_Before he knew it, he was in Parkinson Manor, the home that tonight's meeting was to be held in. He took a quick glance around to find his father. Draco caught a bit of the white-blond hair that could only be Lucius' from behind the black hood and mask of one of the many figures. He wasn't curious as to whom the rest of tonight's participants were though; he already knew who would be there. _

_Draco proceeded to veil his face with mask and hood, but stopped short. Voldemort had told him he had to be spotted easily among his followers. Draco remembered this just in time too; it seemed that the Dark Lord was making his way into the low lit living space._

_Strangely enough, it was at this time that Draco noticed how different Voldemort truly looked. He was a slight mixture of his former 16-year old self and what he looked like during Draco's fourth year. His face still had the high, chiseled cheekbones that Draco himself possessed and the jet black hair that almost looked blue when looked at from a certain angle, but it wasn't coiffed; more like a long, shaggy mess. Yet, he no longer had those protruding obsidian eyes; they glowed red or yellow now. His skin had no trace of colour whatsoever. It was that of a pure snow white, making his eyes and hair stand out more. Draco thought that he might actually be rather handsome if it weren't for the ghostly or demonic vibe he got from him. _

_Just like Voldemort had planned for, Draco was spotted easily among the rankings and summoned forward to speak with the Dark Lord._

_Face to face, they proceeded to speak in hushed tones. Although Draco knew who would be at the meeting, no other Death Eater knew of this plan._

"_Is everything prepared?" Voldemort asked with a slight hiss._

"_Yes, my Lord." Draco briefly flashed Voldemort the weapon in his pocket in response as well._

"_Ahh, yes. I forgot you were using a Muggle device. I am anxious to see how it will be put to good use, young Draco," Voldemort stated in smug satisfaction._

"_You will soon enough, my Lord."_

"_Excellent. Then let us not waste any more time. You know what you need to do." Voldemort dismissed Draco with a slight wave of the hand as Draco began the search for his father. _

_The Dark Lord prepared to call the room to attention, requesting that Lucius and Draco step forward from the rest of the pack without their masks or hoods._

_Lucius immediately sank to his knees in front of the Dark Lord, like a worshipper at an altar. Draco silently bowed and searched Voldemort's face for any signs of commencement. The Dark Lord gave him a slightly feral smirk; his sign. No sooner than Draco saw that, he brought his right elbow down on Lucius' skull; a weak Lucius was easier to kill in Draco's mind._

_Lucius looked up, stunned, into his son's face. As he got up, Draco gave him a blow to the stomach followed by a sharp hook to the nose. Draco thought he heard cracking, but continued his blows relentlessly. After a good ten minutes, he had gotten Lucius to the ground, a look of panic and a slight fear present in the elder man's eyes. It was at that time that Draco pulled out the pistol, noting the growing fear in his father's eyes._

_Draco unlocked the pistol and took out a white monogrammed handkerchief out of his pant's pocket, bending down in the process. When things couldn't get any weirder for him, Draco began talking to his father, cleaning his face all the while._

"_Do you find me sadistic? You know, I bet I could fry an egg on your head right now, if I wanted to. You know, Father, I'd like to believe that you're aware enough even now to know that there's nothing sadistic in my actions. I've had this whole little situation planned out for a while now, too. Even Mother helped me. She was the one that got me this lovely pistol that you're so desperately staring at." Draco flashed him a brilliant smile. "But don't think that I woke up one morning and said 'I think I might kill my father today'. No, you can give credit for coming up with this little task to the wizard that you've been worshipping for the past, what? 20-25 years? Let's go with 25."_

_He stood up to his full height, satisfied with the cleaning job on his father's face. He raised the gun, poised to shoot, but then he paused, saying one last thing to the man that **he**__worshipped._

"_No Father, at this moment, this is me at my most masochistic."_

"_Draco, I've-"_

_But Draco never got to hear Lucius' last words since just at that moment, a gunshot rang through the air, silencing him forever. _

_Lucius Gabriel Malfoy was dead at age 50. Shot in the head by his 19-year old son._

I went completely Muggle for this one, even down to where I shot him.

Yeah, I know. I'm a bit of a sick fuck. My thoughts at the time were 'If I'm going to kill him with a Muggle weapon, why not do it Muggle every step of the way?' I had no idea that I would get so involved.

Where I shot my father though, well, I got the idea from some Muggle religion. Christianity, I believe. You see, I shot him square in the forehead, know as the 'brand or mark of Cain.' Know as such because God marked Cain after killing his brother Abel. The mark is supposed to be the mark of a murderer. I told you I was a sick fuck during the planning stages.

In case you're wondering, we held a funeral. Mum and I only felt it was necessary to make Father's death seem as normal and the family as grief-ridden as possible to the press. We told them that he died of heart failure. We left it to the press to twist it however way they wanted to. He now resides in the Malfoy family mausoleum on the manor's grounds.

It was only after Lucius died that my aunt Sophia decided to make another appearance.

* * *

**A/N**-Well this was a fun chapter. I know that the set up from chapter to chapter may seem confusing to some, but they switch from the present to the past. The last chapter will be like this one, a combo of the past and the present (and a little something extra, but I don't want to give away the ending). Thanks to Angel, my loverly beta. 

**References**-Part of Draco's speech to Lucius and his last words to him. They are from Kill Bill Vol. 1 and they are spoken by Bill. The original lines go as such:

"Do you find me sadistic? You know, I bet I could fry an egg on your head right now, if I wanted to. You know, Kiddo, I'd like to believe that you're aware enough even now to know that there's nothing sadistic in my actions. Well, maybe towards those other... jokers, but not you. No Kiddo, at this moment, this is me at my most...masochistic."

I didn't use all of them. Only the ones that seemed to make the most sense with Draco's character and the situation.

Next chapter: Ginny and Alise go to Narcissa's birthday party, we meet aunt Sophia, and a major plot point! It should be a good one :).


	5. Bella Luna

**A/N-** Never fear my dearies, 'A Study of the Mind' is back! hehe. An explaination to all of the hold-ups at the end.

* * *

Chapter 5- Bella Luna (Part 1 of 2 of Narcissa's Birthday Gala) 

She was scrambling. Boy was she scrambling. Her normal anal retentive self was left to the wind throughout the week.

The remaining five days seemed to mesh together in a blur, all leading up to Saturday. Trips to Diagon Alley were made, along with visits to Muggle London, especially some store that Ginny couldn't pronounce or heard of previously, but Alise called it 'Louis Vuitton'. Ginny and Alise ended up walking out of 'Louis Vuitton' with a leather handbag each.

As the week progressed, Alise gave up hope on trying to find a date and decided to get ready with Ginny. A plan was formulated involving Alise spending Friday night at Ginny's flat, while on Saturday, they'd spent the entire day getting ready at their own leisure. An ensemble was also picked out for both women. There came a point during one of their outings to Madame Malkin's where they almost ended up buying the same dress robe. Luckily, that was squashed the next day when Ginny found a dress that made her forget the infamous dress and the incident that followed it. As a result of Ginny's sudden change in robe preference, Alise snagged up the coveted dress when her friend wasn't looking.

At long last, Friday was over and Saturday came on swift wings, bringing with it Narcissa's birthday party. It was then that Ginny lost it.

A crash was heard from the kitchen causing Alise to run at mock speed towards the source, an eyelash curler partially blinding her as well. As she skidded to a stop in front of the swinging kitchen door, she attempted to catch her breath to no avail. A small whimper or sob could be heard, but Alise couldn't put her now blood red nails on which. She carefully opened the door so as not to ruin her nails and took a peek inside. Slumped against the refrigerator was a rumpled looking Ginny Weasley staring quite morosely at a shattered vase, its multi-coloured stemmed contents splayed across the wood-panelled floor.

"Ginny, what in God's name just happened?"

Alise was met with an unwelcome silence, so she bent down, staring her friend straight in the eye.

"Ginny, you've got to tell me what happened so I know how to help fix it."

A choked sob was Ginny's response along with a mumbled "You wouldn't understand."

"I wouldn't understand what? That in a sudden fit of rage you decided to throw your flower vase to the floor in self-pity while scaring the bejesus out of your best friend? No, I think I understood that."

Ginny looked up into her friend's eyes before getting up.

"You sound like Draco when you do that."

"Really?" Alise asked with a slight twinkle in her eye. "Well, if it'll get you out of your occasional bouts of self-pity, then I must 'sound like Draco' more often."

"How much longer until the party?"

"We still have a good four hours."

"Then why are you putting on eye makeup now?"

"Ginny, Ginny, Ginny. I'm experimenting. Seeing which look will go better with my dress to you know, impress any eligible bachelors out there."

There was a good thirty seconds of an awkward silence before Ginny answered.

"That's got to be the strangest thing I've ever heard of."

"Hey, don't come crying to me when your look doesn't receive the biggest impact."

"Alise, I'm not trying to outshine Narcissa, unlike you. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to take a nice soak in the tub before getting ready."

As Ginny walked towards her bathroom at the other end of the flat, she could hear Alise yell out "I'm not trying to outshine Narcissa!" Ginny shook with silent laughter as she walked. Alise's makeup at the present time seemed to take on a baroque sense: overblown and grand. To Ginny, it looked more theatrical than elegant with the long faux eyelashes and bright Chinese red lips. While it would have been perfect if Alise was walking down a haute couture runway, it was not the appropriate makeup for a birthday party. Ginny hoped her comment would make Alise tone down her outlandish makeup.

Ginny entered her bathroom and turned on the taps in her grandiose Roman-style tub. Sifting through the medicine cabinet, she found a suitable bubble bath and poured a good dosage into the pearly blue water. She stripped herself of her clothing and tentatively stepped it. Her troubles were soaked away over the next 2 hours, causing her to shrivel up like a prune in the process.

Realizing that she couldn't get any cleaner, Ginny stepped out, drying her self off as she exited the bathroom to go into her adjoining bedroom. Towel still wrapped around her body, Ginny made her way over to her wardrobe to retrieve her dress.

Her dress was a thing of beauty it was. The moment she saw it, she knew it was meant to be hers. No one else at the party would have it and just for tonight, she wouldn't mind standing out. The dress itself was a halter made of chiffon and silk. It was a pale orange colour with hints of salmon mixed in. The fabric covered her "assets" perfectly with a neckline low enough so it teased but didn't give too much away, ending just below her breasts. Around her waist it wrapped around with the same fabric, a copper brooch right at the centre with orange, red and gold jewels embedded into the piece of jewellery. The bottom portion, or skirt, trailed down in the same orangey chiffon fabric with the salmon coloured silk underneath, ending in a small train behind her. It was the slightest bit flouncy, but it made Ginny feel girly and surprisingly, the orange dress didn't clash with her red hair.

Ginny carefully took the dress out of the wardrobe, examining its beauty. She gingerly placed it on her bed and went back to retrieve her shoes and handbag. She decided to buy a copper coloured bag as well as shoes to not only make the dress' brooch stand out, but to make her hair seem more "multi-faceted". The shoes were Muggle made by an American company called Chinese Laundry. The purse, Ginny picked up at one of the lesser known boutiques in Diagon Alley, called Diagon Outfitters. Considered a rather eclectic shop, the clutch Ginny found there had two huge gold balls as fasteners, reminding Ginny of the coin purses that old women carry around.

Placing the shoes on the floor and the clutch on the bed, Ginny unwrapped the towel from her body, took the dress off its hanger and slipped it on. Realizing she forgot one crucial detail, Ginny ran to her chest of drawers and pulled out a pair of peach silk and lace boy short underwear. Slipping them on under her dress, she scampered over to her vanity, taking a seat in front of the mirror.

Scattered on the vanity's table were items like lipstick, lip gloss, eye shadow, mascara, eye liner, and powder. Ever since Ginny was hired by Narcissa, she began growing accustomed to a life similar to the one that Draco led as a boy. She flat out refused to own a house elf, but appreciated some of the finer aspects in life, like makeup from Muggle companies such as M.A.C. and Stila. As a child, Ginny was never one for Glamours when it came to applying makeup. From experience, she learned it was better to apply one's makeup by hand.

At the vanity, Ginny began gathering her tools: the various brushes, shades of eye shadow, the black eyeliner, etc. With an array of choices in front of her, she picked up the foundation and sponge and got to work.

About and hour and several changes later, Ginny settled on a look that worked for her. Composed of shades similar to that in her dress, black eye liner and mascara, Ginny's eye makeup suited her and with a pale peach lip gloss on instead of lipstick, Ginny was pleased with her decision. Now there was just one obstacle left: her hair.

She had no friggen clue what to do with it. By the time she finished her makeup, it was almost dry, its curly self turning into an unruly mass.

A knock was heard on the door. Ginny got up and opened it, revealing Alise in all of her splendour.

"Aww, Alise, you look splendid! Simply marvellous!"

"Thanks, Gin. I'm telling you, that dress looks amazing on you! Oh and we have an hour left."

"You must be referring to my lack of a hairdo then? Don't worry, I'm working on it."

"Here let me do it," Alise said, reaching out to take Ginny's hair in her hands.

Ginny backed away immediately. "I don't know. After your little eye makeup fiasco, I'm not sure I want to be another one of your experiments."

"Ginny, I will do no such thing to you and you know it! Just trust me."

Another forty-five minutes later, Ginny and Alise emerged from Ginny's room, Ginny with a hairstyle befit for a Grecian goddess with its piled up curls and Alise with a slight change to her already perfect dress. Although Alise came out of the dress incident with a black corset and a-line cocktail silk sheath, she decided to change it to a deep blue. She and Ginny agreed; it looked better in blue than in black. She had matching matte blue stilettos and clutch, while her hair was straightened, done up in a middle pony-tail with her bangs pinned back so it looked slightly poofed. Her eye liner was black and minimally winged with blue eye shadow for undertones on the top and bottom lids. Alise, thankfully, was able to pull it off and gosh darn it did she look amazing.

Both women checked that they had all of their necessary items, including the invitations tucked neatly into their bags, before Apparating to Malfoy Manor and Narcissa's birthday gala.

* * *

To say that Narcissa Malfoy's birthday gala was the biggest wizarding event of the year was an understatement. 

Pansy and Saphira took it upon themselves to make a (what else?) green carpet. As the guests arrived, each one proceeded to walk down the green carpet, amidst a frenzy of reporters and paparazzi gathered at the event.

Not used to such things, Ginny and Alise seemed rather meek and out of place. After a few minutes though, they warmed up to the photographers, even posing for a few pictures.

Eventually, they made their way to the front door, promptly greeted by Pansy (who both women knew from either the Ministry, or in Ginny's case, school) and an exotic, but obviously gorgeous woman who must be none other than Saphira Zabini, Blaise's mom. After being sent off by Pansy and Saphira with a peck on the cheek and a hug, Ginny and Alise stepped foot into the overly decorated Malfoy Manor.

Decked out in green and silver, everything in the manor was given a larger than life sense. Narcissa was nowhere to be seen, but Ginny was sure that she was off schmoozing with her guests. The guests. There had to be at least over 200 people present, not including family, both the Blacks and the Malfoys. They scoped out the crowd, recognizing a few people here and there, but those were few and far between. Ginny and Alise felt like complete strangers among the wizarding society's elite and were starting to regret their decision to come.

Overcome with an inane need for something to drink, Ginny excused herself from Alise's death grip and talked her way to the bar.

* * *

Alise, now alone, was unsure of what to do. Ginny said she'd be right back, but that was some time ago. She barely knew anyone here and instead of that being a comforting thought that only scared her more. 

She was beginning to lose all hope in Ginny ever coming back and, more importantly, in her continuing to be a dateless loser, when a very handsome, dark-haired someone emerged out of the crowd.

He had a cat-like grace to him, with his dark hair and light blue eyes. It was an interesting combination, but Alise adored it. He didn't look tan or ghostly white, like many of the men here, but what seemed like a happy medium. He was wearing black pants and a black dress shirt with a blue tie that matched the colour of Alise's dress. Alise knew that she was going to meet at least one guy tonight, but boy did she just hit the jackpot. As he walked closer, he let a little smirk quirk his positively kissable lips. Alise was getting nervous now and she did not want to mess this moment up. He stopped right in front of her, flashing a dazzling smile before speaking.

"Hello. I'm Blaise Zabini. And you are?"

* * *

"Mother, it is absolutely necessary for me to be here?" 

"Antonio, you know it's your aunt Narcissa's birthday. We must be here," the woman spoke with a slight Italian accent, taking a sip of her martini in the process.

"But this is what? The third time I've seen her?"

"Stop whining, Antonio. What are you? A twenty-four year old or a six year old?"

"Neither, but you could've gone by yourself while I could've stayed back in Italy."

"And stay with that harem of women in our Milan flat? I don't think so."

Antonio cringed at that last statement. He hated it when his mother made allusions to his dating life.

"Ahh…I see where this is heading. You dragged me all the way to England so I could find some nice English girl to marry and have hundreds of children with."

"Something along those lines, but the company is an added bonus," the woman replied with a smirk and another sip of her martini.

"Sophia de Medici, I don't know whether to be happy to call you my mother or to curse the day I sprung from your loins," Antonio replied with a kiss on his mother's cheek. "I'm going to get another Mai Tai."

"And don't you dare come back until you find yourself a suitable girl!"

Antonio turned over his shoulder and smiled before continuing onto the bar.

* * *

Antonio socialized his way to the bar. 

There were many gorgeous women at his aunt Narcissa's party, no doubt about that. The trouble was that many of these types of beauties he could find back home in either Milan or Florence. None of them stood out, even the part-Veela women. Usually once a Veela woman found you attractive, they clung on for dear life, but being part-Veela himself, Antonio was thankfully immune.

His mother had told him not to come back until he found a suitable girl and he would do well to follow his mother's orders. A Medici or not, she was still a Malfoy by birth. To defy his mother, especially on something as important to her as this would be like treason. He just needed to find one girl that his mother would approve of. Being beautiful would be an added bonus, but if he didn't love her, which was something he could count on, there was always his "harem of women" back home.

Antonio wasn't one to brag (unlike his cousin Draco), but he was what one would call a bloody Adonis. Although Italian by birth, he received almost the entire Malfoy gene collection. He was often mistaken for his cousin Draco, but if one looked closely enough, one could tell them apart easily. For example, while Draco has the silver eyes that most Malfoys have, Antonio inherited the Medici dark brown eyes. Also, if the eyes didn't give it away, then the obvious Italian accent would.

As he got closer to the bar, he saw some more hopeful prospects, even this one Asian-looking chick, but she seemed to be engrossed in conversation with the self-proclaimed former Hogwarts Boy-Whore, Blaise Zabini.

_Tis a shame that a woman that beautiful is going to be wasted on him_, Antonio thought with a shake of his head.

After her though, he didn't notice anyone else. He carefully approached the bar, but was nearly knocked to the ground by some girl. He regained his balance quickly, but she was still falling. Doing the gentlemanly thing, he snagged her waist before she made contact with the ground.

She looked up at Antonio to thank him, but instead of thanking him, her eyes went wide and one word was uttered from her lips. It was so low that one had to strain to hear it.

"Draco."

"No. I'm sorry. That would be my mentally incapacitated cousin," Antonio said as he straightened both of them out. "I'm Antonio. Antonio de Medici. May I ask who you are?"

"Oh. I'm terribly sorry, Antonio. My name is Ginevra Weasley, or Ginny for short. I'm Draco's psychologist."

"Ginevra, eh? Nice strong Italian name. It translates to Geneva in English. Did you say that you're Draco's psychologist?"

"Thank you and yes, yes I am."

"No wonder why you thought I was Draco."

"Yes now that you mention it, you do resemble Draco in many ways. Except for the accent, of course."

"And the eyes."

"Oh, yes, the eyes," Ginny said with a slight smile.

"So, Ginevra, you must tell me what it's like baby-sitting Draco?" Antonio asked, extending an arm to Ginny.

Ginny giggled a bit nervously at Antonio's question, yet took his arm before replying.

"Yes, I suppose it is like baby-sitting him, isn't it? Well, he's very much like the spoiled brat that I went to school with, but in some ways he isn't. He doesn't like answering my questions and when he does, he has a tendency to go off into some wild tangent that has nothing to do with the topic at hand. He's just so frustrating sometimes that I want to strangle the little bastard. Oh, sorry, I forgot; you're family. I didn't mean to speak so lowly of him."

"Oh no, it's quite alright. We were never really that close, his family and mine. In fact, this is the third time in my entire life that I've seen my aunt Narcissa."

"That must be horrid!"

"I take it that you're rather close to your family then?"

"Well, with six older brothers one has to be."

"So you're the youngest?"

"Yes."

"Alas, as an only child, I have no concept of what having siblings would be like."

"In some ways you're very lucky, Antonio."

"So I've been told," he replied with a smile.

Ginny coloured slightly at Antonio's smile. She couldn't help it, he was extremely gorgeous and from what she could tell so far, the perfect gentleman.

They had made their way to the centre of the dance floor by now. As if on cue, the music started up and Ginny was pulled into Antonio's arms in one grand sweeping motion.

In his arms, Ginny could feel the warmth of his body, his breath hovering near her neck and the raw Italian sensuality extruding from his every pore. He was so much like Draco, yet so different. She had so many questions for him that she couldn't help asking.

"Antonio, you must tell me all about your family."

"Well, you already know Draco and my aunt Narcissa and my mother's brother Lucius, right?"

"Of course."

"You know how Draco killed uncle Lucius?"

"Yes, that happened to be on of the few things that I got out of Draco."

"Then there's not much left to tell," Antonio said with a chuckle.

"What about your mother and your life growing up in Italy?"

"My mother, Sophia, is originally English by birth. My father, Lorenzo, is a descendant of what was the largest banking family in Florence, the Medicis. He's also a Muggle. My mother, coming from a pure-blooded wizarding family, was soon disowned after marrying my father. So I guess she's the black sheep of the family. Because she was disowned, I had little or no contact with my mother's family. Growing up, I lived in both worlds: the wizarding and Muggle. My parents are prominent figures in both of the worlds, so my household was an interesting combination of both."

"My, that sounds like a fascinating childhood."

"I guess you could call it fascinating."

"Well, its better to live in Italy than in England."

"Is that so?"

"I mean, you have access to so many different enriched cultures and you're a half-blood, so you get to experience the wonders of both worlds. I didn't experience the Muggle world until this year and that was because my friend Alise grew up with it."

"Is being a half-blood a bad thing?" Antonio asked. Ginny seemed like a sweet girl, but she was starting to put a toe over to being annoying and/or insulting. Antonio couldn't figure out which yet.

"No, it's not, but I was brought up in a pure-blooded household and although my father worked in the Department for Misuse of Muggle Artefacts, it just isn't the same as experiencing the world yourself."

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"No, you shouldn't apologize, I did sound rather insulting."

Maybe she wasn't so bad if she was willing to take blame for her faults.

Yet after Ginny said that, there was an awkward silence as the music began to fade. Antonio loosened his grasp around Ginny's waist. Even though she did insult him, he felt something emanating from her nonetheless. He had to admit she was a very pretty girl. She wasn't the exotic socialite that he was used to dating, but she was more of puritan goddess. Her look was vaguely reminiscent of that of a Roman or Greek goddess, from her hair to her dress. If she didn't do anything else that she might regret, maybe he could introduce her to his mother at the end of the night.

* * *

Sophia de Medici stood at the opposite end of the room watching her son. More specifically, her son and some red-headed girl.

The girl was smiling at something Antonio had said and Sophia saw the blush creeping up the girl's cheeks when Antonio did the same.

As of yet, Sophia was satisfied that her son hadn't ended up dancing with a skank. If she was lucky, she might meet this red-headed girl by the end of the night.

Maybe bringing Antonio along wasn't such a bad idea after all.

* * *

"_Hello. I'm Blaise Zabini. And you are?"_

"Hi," Alise said with a small wave. "I'm Alise Martin. Nice to meet you, Blaise."

"Likewise," Blaise spoke with a kiss to Alise's hand.

"You must be Saphira's son then?"

"The one and only," Blaise said with a smile.

_Wow. He looks amazing when he smiles_, Alise wistfully thought.

"You must know her then?" Blaise continued.

"Oh, no. In fact, I met her tonight at the door; I just recognized the last name."

"Ah, yes. That would give it away wouldn't it? So, tell me Alise, what brings you here? Besides Narcissa's birthday of course."

"Of course. Well, I'm her sister, Bellatrix's, psychologist, so I guess I was invited for that reason."

"I'm not interrupting any date that you're having, am I? Some one as beautiful as you must have a date."

"Oh, no!" Alise almost exclaimed with a smile. "No. No. In fact, I believe the person that I came with, my friend Ginny, seems to have found someone." Alise finished with a point in Ginny's direction. "Wait, is that Draco?"

Blaise followed Alise's finger to where Ginny was. "No, that's his cousin Antonio. And if you don't mind me asking, how do you know Ginny?"

"I work with her. She's Draco's psychologist. Why? Do you know her from somewhere?"

"Do I know her from somewhere? I went to school with her."

"Really? Oh, you must tell me what she was like."

"Well, truth be told, I wasn't all that friendly with her. In fact, it was common sport in the Slytherin House to make fun the Weasleys more than the other Gryffindors."

"Buy why? I mean aren't you friends with her now?"

"Yeah, _now_ we're friends, but that's only because of the Ministry, but when were still in Hogwarts, we weren't exactly what you would call 'best pals'."

"You still didn't tell me why you made fun of Ginny and her family," Alise said with coy smile.

"I guess I didn't. I must correct that now. Normally, the Slytherins, my house, just made fun of the Gryffindors, Ginny's house. We left most the Weasley related taunts to Draco. He and his family have this long standing grudge against the Weasleys. I always thought it was kind of ridiculous, but then again, I'm neither a Weasley nor a Malfoy, am I?"

"So that's why Ginny hates being Draco's psychologist," Alise spoke with an air of a new dawn coming over her.

"I never really thought about that, but yes."

Like Antonio, Blaise was on the hunt for a girl. His mother, Saphira, had given him specific instructions of what he supposed to do tonight. Besides helping her and Pansy with the party, he was told to "find a suitable girl because having a one-night stand almost every night of the week does not make a woman wife material;" the clincher of all this being that he had to introduce said girl to his mother by the end of the night. He had fallen into one his mother's accursed traps. Boy did he hate that. It was bad enough that his mother knew of his infamous nickname from school, but now she was using it in her favour. She was a crafty woman, that Saphira Zabini.

"So, Alise, you never did tell me where you're from."

"Oh, originally, I'm from America; Southern California to be exact. I only moved to England to go to a competent wizarding college. Don't get me wrong though, American wizarding schools, especially the junior and high schools, are amazing, but their wizarding colleges aren't up to par yet. My parents are both pure-blooded; among the few in America."

"America, you say? From what I've seen of it, which is not much mind you, it's rather nice."

"Well, what parts of America have you seen?"

"Parts of New York and Florida."

"So you've never been to California?"

"Nope. Never."

"I must take you then! It's beautiful!"

"We'll see," Blaise replied with a smile.

"Blaise, dear!"

"Oh, hello, Mother," Blaise said as Saphira planted a kiss on her son's cheek.

"Blaise, who is this young lady that you seem to be so enwrapped in conversation with?" Saphira asked with an appraising gesture aimed at Alise.

"Oh, my apologies. Mother, this is Alise Martin. Alise, this is my mother, Saphira Zabini."

"Pleased to meet you, Alise."

"You as well, Mrs. Zabini."

"Oh, call me 'Saphira', darling. Besides, Mr. Zabini died some odd years ago."

"I'm terribly sorry, Saphira."

"For what, dearie? Blaise's father was only the seventh out of a long line of men."

"Blaise never told me that."

"I wouldn't expect him to," Saphira said with a charming smile.

Alise didn't know how to reply to that, so she did the most logical thing: she smiled.

"Alise was it?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Do you think I could talk to you in private?"

"Oh, I don't know Mrs. Zab- I mean, Saphira."

"Blaise doesn't mind. Do you, dear?"

"Of course not. Just don't be too hard on her would you, mother? I kind of like this one," Blaise finished with a wink to Alise.

Alise visibly blushed at this, but smiled nonetheless.

"Don't worry, love. It'll only be a few minutes," Saphira said, slowly taking Alise to a small alcove in the ballroom.

* * *

God how she hated birthday parties; especially her own.

It wasn't like that when she was younger though. In fact, it was quite the opposite.

When she was younger, every birthday meant another age closer to maturity and getting away from her family. Once she hit thirty-five though, it was just another reminder of how old she was.

She had to admit that this year's shindig was turning out to be quite the social event. And as an added bonus, her husband wasn't there to parade her around like some trophy! Yet, with every positive, there must be a negative.

This year's negative was the lack of certain charming and charismatic twenty-four year old, also known as her son. While it never seemed like it, she really did enjoy her son's company at such soirees. He was gentlemanly, kind and always complimentary. As _he_ grew older, they began to play a game of sorts. With his good looks, he was able to pick up women very quickly. So, they formed a bet. At the very beginning of the night, they'd both make guesses as to how many floo locations he's get, the equivalent of a Muggle telephone number. To many, their bet seemed shallow and too inhuman for a mother and son to have, but when affection is scorned upon in their household, and as strange as it sounds, it was the closest thing they had to expressing the love they had for each other.

That morning, she had looked forward to formulating the bet with her son, but she remembered where he was and what his current mental state was.

She never remembered crying so much.

Not even at her husband's funeral, but that was only because she was expected to.

As she walked around the crowded ballroom, socializing with guests, many she didn't even know, the reality of it all hit her. She tried to get him out for this one night, but the hospital wouldn't budge. Seeing Antonio was like putting salt into a fresh wound.

So with her fake smile plastered onto her face, Narcissa Malfoy meandered around her party, inwardly mourning the mental loss of her son, Draco, with each step.

* * *

**A/N-** Now an explaination to the whole '1 of 2' bit: Originally, ch. 5 was 23 pages written so far. If I continued to write it out, it would have been well over 30 pages. Typed, this chapter is 13 pages, so it's rather long. Ch. 6, "The Devil Wears Prada", concludes Narcissa's birthday festivites. As to why it took me so long to get this out, just real life problems, but I shall try my best to post ch. 6 in 2 weeks time. Also, I know that Narcissa wasn't featured all too much except for that last bit there, but she'll be seen more in ch. 6.

**References**- **Peanut** at pointed out that Saphira's name comes from Christopher Paolini's book 'Eragon', so I do not own it. And the Medicis are REAL people. Look it up (they were well known during the Renaissance in Florence, Italy). Obviously, Sophia and Antonio are NOT.

Next chapter: Alise talks with Saphira, Ginny talks with Sophia, and Alise's 20 minutes of weirdness. Plus, a bigger appearance from the birthday girl! Oh and if you wish to recieve emails as to when I update, either leave your email in your review and tell me you would like an update, or join the D/G Yahoo!Group.


	6. Strange Occurences

**A/N- **This chapter is named "Strange Occurrences" for a reason. There are no spoliers in this chapter and yes, I did change the chapter name. This one fits better.

As always, I don't own the lovely Ginevra Weasley, Draco Malfoy (although I wish I did...), Narcissa Malfoy, Blaise Zabini, or Pansy Parkinson. I _do_, however, own Alise, Antonio, Sophia, and Saphira. Also, a smidge of the plot. Yay for me!

* * *

Chapter 6- Strange Occurrences (Part 2 of 2 of Narcissa's Birthday Gala) 

Ginny had to admit that she was having a good time with Antonio. He wasn't like any of the other guys that she had previously dated. Originally, her intention was to come to the party with Alise and happily watch Alise charm the pants off of her next piece of arm candy. And at the beginning of the night, she was content with that choice. She still was even when she met Antonio. Yet, as the night progressed, her mantra was slowly slipping away, being replaced with the hope that she might get to see him again.

Ginny was pulled back to reality at the sound of Antonio's voice.

"Ginny? Did you hear me?"

"What? Oh, I'm sorry. I'm afraid I didn't catch that last part. Do you think you could repeat it?"

"Well, I was wondering if you would like to meet my mother, Sophia?"

"Don't you think it's a bit too soon to meet your mother? After all, I met you for the first time tonight."

"Nonsense. Besides, she'll be pestering me about you after the party, so you might as well meet her now."

"Umm…I suppose I could," Ginny replied with a shy smile.

"Great!" Antonio exclaimed with another one of his brilliant smiles. He let go of Ginny completely and beckoned her with a hand. "Here, follow me."

"Ok."

_Oh god. I didn't expect to meet his mother tonight!_ Ginny frantically thought. _I only met the bloke just two hours ago! I'd understand if we were going out for at least a month or so, but this is a little absurd. Ok. Ok. Just calm down, Ginny. It's only nerves. You'll be fine. If anything, think of Antonio's smile. Yes, his smile. _

About five minutes and some crafty manoeuvring later, Ginny was face to face with Sophia de Medici.

If there was ever a time Ginny was afraid, it was definitely now. One would think that it would be a point during the war, or even the Chamber, but no, Sophia trumped them all. Sophia de Medici was a tall, willowy woman with wavy, white blonde hair that was vaguely reminiscent of the short bobs of the Roaring Twenties. She had slanting, bright blue eyes that stood out like a pair of daggers against her pale, yet clear complexion. As if she wasn't striking enough, her robes were that of an icy blue, cut in a way that hugged what little curves she had, and made her eyes seem even more piercing than they already were. If it weren't for the fact that Ginny liked Antonio a great deal and was genuinely curious about Draco's disowned aunt, she would have ran right then and there.

Antonio seemed to be the only one who noticed Ginny's fear. He had a feeling that Ginny would react in this manner. Most people did when they saw his mother for the first time. Upon further reflection, he realized that if he were in Ginny's shoes, he'd be afraid as well. Shaking himself out of his small daze, he attempted to subdue Ginny's fear by starting the conversation.

"Mother, this is Ginevra Weasley. Ginny, this is my mother, Sophia de Medici."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Ginevra," Sophia spoke with a slight Italian accent.

"You as well. And you can call me Ginny; Ginevra sounds so formal, Mrs. Medici."

"Alright, Ginny, but on one condition: I insist that you call me Sophia," Sophia stated with a smile identical to her son's.

"Of course…Sophia."

"So, Ginny, tell me, how exactly do you know my sister-in-law, Narcissa?"

"I'm her son, Draco's, psychologist," Ginny stated with the common air of someone discussing the weather.

"Come again?" Sophia said with her eyes slightly wider than normal.

"I'm Draco's psychologist," Ginny repeated with the slightest bit of uncertainty. _Is it a bad thing to be Malfoy's psychologist?_

Much to Ginny's dismay, Sophia began speaking to Antonio in hushed tones. She strained to hear, but begrudgingly realized that they were speaking in Italian. She straightened out just as both began to turn towards Ginny with their identical and somewhat creepy smiles.

Gingerly, Sophia placed a hand on Ginny's arm, carefully leading her away from a weary-looking Antonio. Ginny saw that Sophia was leading her to a side room and began anticipating the twenty questions session that was sure to ensue.

The one thing that she didn't expect was the first thing that came out of Sophia's mouth once the door was closed and locked.

"Do you have any idea what you've gotten yourself into, Ginevra?"

"Sophia, I have no idea what you're talking about."

"I'm shocked that Antonio never told you when he found out."

"Found out about what?" Ginny at this point was thoroughly confused; these were not the questions she was expecting.

"You being Draco's psychologist."

"I don't see anything wrong with that. I've known him for well over ten years. I think I can handle anything he can dish out, Sophia."

"No, I'm not talking about things of that nature, I mean something _else_."

"How could you possibly know anything about Draco? Not to be rude, but from what I understand, you've only seen Draco two times in his entire life."

Sophia started to laugh. Her laughter reverberated off the walls; rich in its Italian accent, yet stifling, too. She looked at Ginny with the slightest hint of pity.

"Haven't you heard of a nifty little thing called owl post?"

"Of course I have, but aren't you disowned?"

"Just because I may be disowned by my prick of a brother and the rest of my equally detestable family, doesn't mean that I was disowned by said brother's wife and son."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that just because Lucius and the rest of my family disowned me does not mean that Narcissa or Draco did."

"Wait! Hold on! So you've been communicating with Narcissa and Draco all this time?"

"Why does it surprise you?"

"Well, you've never been mentioned by either Draco or Narcissa."

"Have they ever mentioned someone named Luciana?" Sophia asked with a knowing smirk.

"Yes…wait. That was you?"

"Naturally."

"But why take on that alias?"

"My brother was above all things a suspicious little bastard. When he got wind of me communicating with Narcissa and Draco, he began checking any post the two got, forcing me to write under the alias of Luciana, Narcissa's childhood friend and second mother to young Draco. Whenever they stopped by in Italy, they would stay in Florence or Milan with me. You see, Ginevra, once you're disowned in the Malfoy family, there's no turning back. All family members are to refrain from speaking to you and that extends to the spouses and children as well."

"Well, why don't they just starting referring to you as Sophia now that Lucius is gone?"

"Old habits die hard, I suppose."

"Ok, I understand that, but I'm still a bit foggy as to why being Draco's psychologist is a bad thing."

"Have you ever wondered why Draco's had so many psychologists in the past two years alone?"

"No," Ginny was starting to become hesitant at the sound of Sophia's tone.

"Has Narcissa ever told you what afflictions made each of -" Sophia paused, afraid she may have said too much.

"What afflictions? To whom?" Sophia had captured Ginny hook, line and sinker with her last few questions and she left her hanging? Ginny only felt it right to correct this grave wrong.

"No, I've said too much. Narcissa said that you're the best in the field and I trust her judgement. I'm sure you'll find out soon enough, Ginny." Sophia took Ginny's arm again and began leading her out of the small room. "Come now, let us head back towards Antonio," Sophia spoke with a small smile.

Ginny walked out of the room, linked to Sophia, with a look of mild confusion strewn across her face.

_What in god's name was Sophia going on about?

* * *

_On the other side of the ballroom, Saphira Zabini had cornered Alise in one of the many alcoves bordering the room's perimeter. After making sure that they were the only two within said alcove, Saphira rounded on Alise, springing forth her first question.

"What are your intentions with my son?"

"Wh-what?" Alise sputtered. "Saphira, I've only met Blaise just a little over an hour ago. I have no clue what I intend to do with your son."

"So you have no inclinations to snog and/or shag him senseless tonight, then leave him the next morning?"

"I should think not!" Alise spoke with a hint of indignation.

"Good, good," Saphira stated, narrowing her eyes. "Now, tell me, what exactly is it that you do?"

"I'm a criminal psychologist for St. Mungo's and Azkaban. I've worked with many, although my most recent patient is Bellatrix Lestrange."

"Interesting." Alise couldn't be too sure, but with every passing minute, Saphira was starting to sound like a cartoon villain. "This would then explain how you know Narcissa. Based on that, I'm assuming that you live quite comfortably?"

"Well, I guess you could call having a penthouse flat in Muggle London 'comfortable'."

"Yes, my dear, it does," Saphira replied with a smile, segueing into a period of silence.

It was during those three minutes of silence that Alise made up her mind about Saphira Zabini. Alise observed Saphira, noticing the little hand gestures she made while thinking and how her beautifully shaped eye brows crinkled in frustration. She didn't know whether or not there was insanity in Saphira's family, but the past fifteen minutes wasn't helping her case all too much.

After the three minutes were up, Saphira clasped her hands together, her face glowing with joy.

"Oh! This is just lovely!" Saphira exclaimed, shocking Alise.

"What's love -" But before Alise could finish, she was enwrapped in a hug by Saphira, then given two quick kisses on each cheek.

"You have passed, darling! Ah! This is wonderful! Simply marvellous!"

"What do you mean I've 'passed'?" Alise asked, cocking an eye brow.

"I mean you are the perfect girl for my son."

"But, Mrs. Zabini, I mean, Saphira, surely you don't -"

"Nonsense, my dear. I can tell by your reaction that you don't know about my son's infamous track record with women and his equally infamous nickname. But I'm sure you'll find out about all of that in good time."

"Saphira, I get the feeling that Blaise is what one would call 'promiscuous'," Alise stated as she and Saphira walked away from the alcove.

Saphira Apparated to the bar with a pop before returning not thirty seconds later with a green apple martini. She took a sip, wiping some excess off of her mouth with one acrylic nail before replying.

"Sorry about that. I've wanted one ever since we started talking. Anyways, promiscuous doesn't even begin to cover it. He was known for his promiscuity at school, taking the name 'the Hogwarts Boy Whore'. I always asked him why that couldn't be Draco's nickname," Saphira spoke, her left middle finger skimming the rim of the glass. "After all, Draco did bed more girls than my son did."

"If you don't mind me asking, what was Draco's nickname?"

"The Slytherin Sex God," Saphira said in the middle of another sip.

"I think Ginny told me that it implied how good he was in bed," Alise stated with a slight smirk. Apparently, 'in good time' was about five minutes later for Alise.

"Oh," Saphira squeaked.

"Mother! Alise! I've been looking all over for you two!" exclaimed Blaise, walking out of the crowd.

"Hello there, dear," Saphira said, giving Blaise a peck on the cheek.

Alise was about to get a peck from Blaise when he started sniffing his mother. _How strange_, Alise thought, transforming her face into one of a quizzical nature. Blaise gave a hard look to his mother before giving another look to the drink in her hand.

"Mother, is that what I think it is? You know you can't hold your liquor!"

"What in heaven's name are you talking about? I can too hold my liquor and you know it Blaise Alexander Zabini!" Saphira screeched, her now apparent tipsiness becoming quite apparent after she partially slurred Blaise's name.

Blaise whipped out his wand, pointed it at his mother and muttered a quick _Sobrietus_ before grabbing Saphira's martini glass.

Saphira regained her senses immediately and visibly paled. "Oh, sweet Merlin. Alise, I am so sorry. How very embarrassing! This is _not_ the type of impression I had hoped to give you. I must have had one too many drinks that I thought I did."

"Oh, it's ok, Saphira," Alise said with a nervous laugh. "I know what it's like to be thoroughly embarrassed."

"Come, Alise," Blaise commanded, putting an arm around her waist. "I just realized that my mother has other business to attend to."

As soon as they were out of Saphira's range, Alise rounded on Blaise.

"What the hell is wrong with your mother?" Alise asked, grabbing the martini and downing the rest of its contents.

"Alise, what in Merlin's name are you talking about? My mother is perfectly fine."

"Do you have any idea how weird the last twenty minutes of my life has been and all because of your mother? I was perfectly fine with you and then everything just became all weird and awkward after she showed up."

"Would you care to enlighten me as to the weird and awkward situations my mother has induced over the last twenty minutes?" Blaise asked with a small smirk.

"Sure, why not? Ginny's off flirting with Draco's Italian look-alike, my other best friend is in America and my mother would just make everything worse. But first, can we sit somewhere?"

"If it'll make you happy, luv."

"I'll make me very, very happy," Alise hissed.

Alise proceeded to scan the ballroom for a sitting area, but settled for going into Lucius' old study, which Narcissa had transformed into a charming tea room.

"So as you were saying earlier…" Blaise began.

"Ah, yes. Well, when I first met your mother I thought she was a very beautiful woman; slightly indifferent, but beautiful all the same. I was a bit hesitant to talk to her at first, yet I did so anyway because I liked what I was getting from you so far. The first thing your mother said to me when we were alone was, and I quote, 'What are your intentions with my son?'" Alise paused here after hearing a groan from Blaise coupled with him falling back onto the sofa. "She then asked me if I was only interested in you for a one-night stand." Again, Alise stopped for Blaise shot up in his seat with a "She didn't!"

"Oh, yes, she did! I had to explain to her that I wasn't interested in you for anything like that, then she asked me what I did for a living, which granted isn't all that weird, it was the response to all of this that was weird."

"What did she do?"

"She started clasping her hands together, saying that I was the perfect girl…for…you."

"Oh. That is rather awkward, isn't it?"

"Yeah, my sentiments exactly."

"Anything else you'd like to add?"

"Oh, yes; she mentioned your infamous nickname to me."

"Damn it! I told her not to do that! I specifically told her that when the time came, I would tell the girl. But did she listen? Noooo! My mother never listens to anything I tell her when she finds a suitable girl! It all just goes out the window!" Blaise's ranting regarding his mother continued uninterrupted for a good ten minutes before Alise felt compelled to shush him with her index finger over his lips.

"Blaise, I really don't care about your nickname or any other little quirks that you may have; that's who you are, you can't help that. I can deal with your mother, trust me. But, if you see your mother as a problem, then maybe we should just end this acquaintance now; I don't want to be the cause of any problems between you two."

Blaise took Alise's hand and gave it a quick peck before looking into her eyes.

"Alise, I would love nothing more than to see you again sometime soon. Thank you for tolerating my mother tonight; you just have to get used to her manner. And if she does cause any problems, just let me know," Blaise said with a smile.

_Wow. This guy's committed, and I barely even know him,_ Alise thought with a secret smile.

"Thanks and I'll be sure to do so," Alise spoke with a slight blush.

* * *

Narcissa Malfoy spotted Ginny Weasley from across the ballroom with her sister-in-law, Sophia. 

She had to admit that for a Weasley, she sure did clean up nicely. She'd have to ask her where she bought that fabulous dress the next time she talked to her.

Narcissa was vaguely aware of the fact that Pansy Parkinson was talking to her. She nodded and smiled at all the right times, speaking only when necessary. She wanted to get away from the girl and the conversation as soon as possible. Seeing Pansy only reminded her of, who else but, Draco.

Pansy was betrothed to Draco during his fourth year. Lucius felt that it was the only way to ensure his family name's continuation. Narcissa hated the idea of it; she was always reminded of her own miserable failure of a marriage. She never wanted that for Draco, the least of all with Pansy. Not that there was anything wrong with Pansy; she was a smart, sensible girl when need be and she was like a daughter to Narcissa. But she knew her son, and she knew that he never liked Pansy "in that way," as Draco so delicately put it. Never had, never will. She also knew that, much like herself, her son was a bit of a hopeless romantic deep-down. Ok, so maybe he wasn't as hopeless as his mother was, but he was never too keen on the idea of marrying Pansy. Draco, with all of his faults, one being his uncontrollable libido, felt that eventually, he would settle down with a girl from a respectable family, pure-blooded or not. Unfortunately, he was cursed with his father's insatiable need for power and saw becoming a Death Eater as his only means. After he was officially initiated, his life took a downward spiral, the height of it being his incarceration at St. Mungo's. When his condition only worsened, Narcissa felt it was time to quit assigning him amateurs and hire the best in the business. That was how she met Ginny.

Eventually, Narcissa came back to reality and politely excused herself from Pansy's presence, letting out a deep breath as she walked away.

Almost sub-consciously, she made her way through the crowds to where Ginny was standing with Sophia and Antonio. Narcissa would have remained in her trance-like state if it wasn't for the fact that Ginny was addressing her.

"Hello, Narcissa. It's wonderfully to see you again," Ginny said with a smile.

"Oh, yes, hello, Ginny, dear. It's good to see you, too. Are you enjoying yourself at this little soiree of mine?"

"Very much so. I just have one question to ask of you."

"And what is that?"

"Well, on the invitation, Pansy and Saphira referred to you as Narcissa Malfoy, not Narcissa Black, as you preferred to be called."

"Yes, I've received the same comment from many over the course of the night. I'm not exactly sure why they didn't use my maiden name. Maybe it had to do with what little respect the Malfoy name still commands."

"Narcissa, darling, you wound me," Sophia spoke with the slightest bit of contempt.

Narcissa turned at Sophia's comment, seeming to notice her for the first time.

"Sophia! My lovely sister-in-law! It's been ages! How's life in Florence? How's Lorenzo? How's my nephew, Antonio?" Narcissa exclaimed with a bright smile.

Antonio took this as his cue to step out of the shadows and address his estranged aunt.

"Hello aunt Narcissa," Antonio almost whispered.

Narcissa stared up into Antonio's deep brown eyes before speaking.

"My Antonio, how you've grown. Why you were just a tiny thing the last time I saw you and now you're all grown up," Narcissa almost choked out, tears welling up in her eyes.

Narcissa turned away from the trio for a brief moment and with a deft hand motion, wiped her glistening eyes. She took a deep breath before turning back to them with a beatific smile.

"Ginny, didn't Alise come with you?"

"Why yes, she did, but I don't seem to know where she's run off to."

"No matter; I'm sure I'll find her eventually."

After Narcissa's last comment, the group was at a loss for words. No one knew how to continue the already strange conversation.

"Oh, Ginny, I almost forgot; wherever did you get that fabulous dress of yours?" Narcissa asked, saving the conversation.

Ginny looked at her dress, primping and smoothing out the silk and chiffon.

"This thing? I picked it up in Muggle London."

"Really? Surely a dress this lovely has to be made by Madame Malkin herself," Narcissa spoke in disbelief.

"No, Narcissa, I'm positive that I bought it in Muggle London."

Sophia was starting to get the distinct impression that Narcissa's behaviour was a little off and it wasn't due to too much vodka. She knew that Narcissa was upset over Draco's absence, but her over perkiness was pushing it just a bit. She would have to owl her about it when she got back home to Florence.

* * *

The party was starting to wind down. 

Guests were bidding each other farewell, while certain couples were sneaking off in drunken bouts of giggling.

Ginny wished she was one of those couples. And she probably would be if she had been dating Antonio for a certain length of time, but alas, it was not meant to be.

Eventually, she bade Antonio and Sophia farewell. Antonio with a chaste kiss on the cheek and the exchange of addresses for owl post, and Sophia with the standard two cheek kisses. Soon after, they Apparated back to their home in Florence.

Ginny let out a deep sigh at the sound of the pop and went in search of Alise.

She found her after not too long, ensconced by Blaise Zabini. She gasped at first, but decided to hide herself before retrieving Alise.

Blaise's mom, Saphira, was nowhere to be seen, but Ginny could guess by Blaise's behaviour that she was not too far off. He held Alise by the waist and was currently trailing a line of kisses along her neck; Ginny's eye brows raised in shock at Alise's newfound boldness. Alise giggled, but pushed Blaise away, much to Ginny's relief. Alise made a move to walk away, but Blaise grabbed her hand, giving it a quick kiss before pulling her into a hug. When he finally let go, Alise found a small piece of parchment in her hand. Alise only smiled and waved good-bye as Blaise backed away, blowing her a kiss before turning around and walking into the dwindling crowd. Alise gave a sigh and did a small turn before walking away. Ginny took this as her cue to make herself known.

"Hey, Alise! Over here!" Ginny exclaimed, waving her arms to attract Alise's attention.

"Oh, Ginny! It was wonderful!" Alise blurted out as soon as she spotted Ginny.

"What was?" Although Ginny has some idea as to what, or who, Alise was going on about.

Alise refused to tell until she got home, so Ginny guided her to the door.

"Come on, Alise, let's Apparate back to my flat; you can spend the night there."

With a simultaneous pop, Alise and Ginny Apparated to Ginny's flat.

* * *

They Apparated into Ginny's bedroom, immediately collapsing side by side onto Ginny's bed, staring at the ceiling. 

"Alright, Miss Uber Giddy, you go first," Ginny nearly deadpanned.

"Ever heard of a guy named Blaise Zabini?"

"Yeah, why do you ask?"

In response, Alise opened her clutch, pulled out the piece of paper Blaise gave her and handed it to Ginny.

Ginny glanced at it before turning over to face to Alise.

"Why you little slag," she muttered with a smirk.

Alise replied with a smirk of her own before speaking.

"What can I say, Ginny? I may have thought his mother to be temporarily unhinged, but that Blaise Zabini is one sexy beast. I just couldn't help myself. But enough about my night, why don't you tell me about your positively delicious Draco look-alike?"

"Oh, you mean Antonio?" Ginny asked with a coy smile.

"Who's the slag now?"

"Shush you."

"Oh, come on, Ginny! You have to admit that he is a rather scrumptious piece of arm candy!" Alise exclaimed.

Ginny flopped back onto the bed with a dreamy smile painted on her face.

"He is tasty, isn't he?"

"Uh, duh, Ginny. So what was he like?"

"Like Draco at his best, with less snark and more appropriateness."

"Sounds perfect."

"In a way, yes."

"So did you exchange addresses?"

"Of course we did! I'm not that ignorant."

"Well what now?"

"Good question."

"I say you write to him tomorrow."

"Really? Don't you think that's a bit too soon?"

"I'll write to Blaise if you write to Antonio."

"Alise, you've got yourself a deal."

* * *

**A/N-** Alrighty, like I said in the first author's note, this chapter is named "Strange Occurrences" for a reason. Everything that happens in this chapter, happens for a reason. We don't know the reason yet, but trust me, it comes into play later on. As always, thanks to my beta, Angel. She is amazing.

Next chapter: Another flashback chapter. Told much in the same fashion as ch. 3, in terms of the diary. Ginny during her last year at college for her psychology degree. Talks about her final study on Ron and we finally see Professor Upland!

Please review if you see fit to do so. It would be greatly appreciated to hear some feedback. 


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